The show goes on! Preserving performing arts ephemera, or, The power of the program

Collecting and preserving heritage materials across the broad spectrum of the performing arts on a national scale is a daunting task. Much of the material is as ephemeral and as transitory as the theatrical experience itself. In Australia there is a realistic acceptance of the need for a distributed national collection. An active network of individuals and institutions are working to ensure the preservation of the country's performing arts heritage and to enhance access to those collections, increasingly by electronic means. ;